Obituary of Joseph Michael McKeon

Joseph "Mike" McKeon, esteemed political strategist, pollster and analyst, and a lifelong Joliet resident, passed away on Thursday, September 15, 2016 at Edward Hospital in Naperville, at the age of 73. Joseph Michael "Mike" McKeon wasn't the person candidates wanted in the room. He was the guy they needed in the room. Republicans and Democrats alike from across Illinois and the country depended on McKeon to have the pulse of the electorate. They relied on him for his bluntness, his street smarts and his political savvy. "He always knew who to talk to and what questions to ask," said Illinois State Senator Bill Brady, who called on McKeon for polling and strategy in Illinois gubernatorial races. "He was brilliant in his profession. He was blunt, always 200 percent committed and never walked away from a fight." McKeon, constantly ingrained in the nation's political process, polled national and statewide races from coast to coast. He was nationally recognized for his astute ability to identify national and international trends and bake them into winning marketing and political strategies. "It was Mike who predicted David Duke was rising in voter approval in a run for Congress years ago," said Chicago journalist Carol Marin, who considered McKeon a colleague and a friend. "And it was Mike who saw the tribal power of social media a long time before the rest of the so-called political geniuses figured it out." McKeon was ahead of his time in analyzing moods and trends among voters. He penned a Washington Post column in 1994 in which he outlined the evolving media landscape and the way digital technology was supplanting traditional forms of communications. McKeon also predicted the rise of Donald Trump in 2015, early on in the Republican primary race, when others scoffed at his chances. In an email to friends last year, McKeon wrote: "The rule is - if you don't understand the hard reality of what the truth is - of what is on the ground - you will perish." "He wasn't a partisan looking for proof in the polling," said Thom Serafin, President and CEO of Chicago-based communications firm Serafin & Associates. "The polling told him where the world was. When the Internet was barely an infant, he was already talking about global communication and how people would get their information." "Mike was kind of like the Dick Butkus of politics," said Jim "Skinny" Sheahan, a longtime political player in Chicago. "He was full speed ahead all the time, knew where he was going and what to do." McKeon, a veteran of the U.S. Navy, formed his global public opinion research and strategic marketing firm, McKeon & Associates, in 1973. His polling and analysis of the changing American cultural paradigm have been featured in nearly all major media outlets around the globe. He led research and strategy for more than 700 political candidates on both sides of the aisle and had major corporate clients such as Gatorade, ComEd, Walmart and the Chicago Bulls. McKeon's sharp political analysis and visionary intelligence eventually brought him to Saturday Night Live, on which he served as a political script consultant for many years. "Mike had great instincts, and it just wasn't about what he polled," said Paul Vallas, who hired McKeon during his run for Governor of Illinois in 2002. "It was about what he thought instinctively. He was one of the sharpest guys on the block and had great integrity as a political consultant." "Mike never sugarcoated a thing in his life," said Brooke Anderson, an executive at Uber who worked with McKeon on political campaigns. "He was as comfortable with the Prime Minister of Israel as he was on the streets of Joliet as a rough and tumble kid." McKeon is survived by his daughters, Meghan (Bucky) Moreno and Zora Baron; four grandchildren, including his loving twin granddaughters Sophia and Isabella Moreno, and Joe and Lauren; his brothers and sisters Linda (Kenneth) Joslin, Lynn (Edward) Masters, Robert (Linda) Conrad and Cary J. Conrad; numerous nieces and nephews. He will be missed by his faithful friends Jimmy Wheeler and Tim McAnarney. A Memorial Gathering for Mike will be held Friday, September 23, 2016 from 2:00 to 7:30 p.m. at Fred C. Dames Funeral Home, 3200 Black at Essington Roads, Joliet, with a memorial prayer service at 7:30 p.m. Cremation rites have been accorded and interment will be private. In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made to Edward Hospital Foundation, 801 S. Washington St., Naperville, IL 60540. For more information, please call 815-741-500 or visit his Memorial Tribute at www.fredcdames.com.